I'm very excited to announce the Cupertino Lens app, a new home for in-depth, thoughtful, and fun analysis and coverage of all things Apple. It has widgets, an Apple news dashboard, and other touches. Lots more coming. Learn more + download here: cupertinolens.com/2026/09/09…

I’m just going to say it: If OpenAI’s headliner DevDay reveal is a Grok Bot rival and Codex quality-of-life changes, it’s a bummer. Opus 5.5 should’ve lit a fire under them. It’s smart, fast, and efficient, & even on low-tier plans users are having trouble running out.

My 20x Pro $200 Codex subscription ends tomorrow. It's been a nice ride, but Opus 5.5 performance, speed, and much more generous usage + Claude Design have won me back. A Grok Bot competitor from OpenAI, aka "o," won't be enough to get me back on DevDay & I think many agree.

what huh what

Opus 5.5 is way better than Astra.

Apple has shared a new video, once again proving its care for handcrafted and human art instead of AI-video slop. How Apple made the Apple Games campaign video:

Saudi National Day PRESS STATEMENT MARCO RUBIO, SECRETARY OF STATE SEPTEMBER 23, 2026 On behalf of the United States of America, I extend my heartfelt congratulations to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, its leadership, and its people on the occasion of the 96th National Day, commemorating the unification of the Kingdom under the leadership of King Abdulaziz Al Saud.  On this proud day, we celebrate the generosity and the ambition of the Saudi people. Over the past year, the United States and Saudi Arabia have taken historic steps to deepen our strategic partnership.  President Trump and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman finalized landmark agreements expanding Saudi investments in the United States, civil nuclear cooperation, and U.S.-Saudi defense cooperation — reflecting our shared commitment to regional security and stability. Today, we celebrate Saudi Arabia’s heritage and identity, and we look forward to a future of peace and prosperity for both of our nations. state.gov/releases/office-of…

نستذكر في اليوم الوطني، ما قامت عليه هذه الدولة المباركة بفضل من الله ثم بعزم وقيادة الملك المؤسس عبدالعزيز بن عبدالرحمن - طيب الله ثراه - وسواعد أبناء الوطن المخلصين من أُسس راسخة لحفظ العقيدة وإقامة العدل، ونسأل الله أن يديم على بلادنا أمنها واستقرارها وازدهارها.

The balance of love between OpenAI/Anthropic and ChatGPT and Claude has shifted more toward one side after today’s 6-Sol/Luna and Opus 5.5 launch.

Smaller Dynamic Island on the iPhone 18 Pro is noticeable at first but not a major upgrade.

iPhone 18 Pro impressions: - Although it still has aluminum like the iPhone 17 Pro, it has a much nicer, almost softer texture that makes it less slippery to hold - The smaller Dynamic Island is noticeable at first, but with day-to-day use, I doubt it will make that big of a difference for most customers - Variable Aperture rate is a nice to have feature for users who know how to use it and who know a thing or two about photography - Glacier is a very nice blue

GPT-6 Luna is here!

the most badass iPhone ever: black iPhone 18 Pro 😍

Fixed iOS Notifications.

The new texture and grain controls demoed at #AppleEvent are not exclusive to the new iPhone and will be available via iOS 27 to all models that support the latest Photographic styles.

This is new: Apple says that on the “iPhone 18 Pro or later,” the new under-display Face ID technology uses facial images in addition to data from the infrared sensor to authenticate a user.

As an influencer (often known as one fairly critical and seldom invited to events from any brand, much less Apple), let me put it this way: Are there influencers that are not journalistic in their approach and hold back criticism for fear of losing access? Yes. Is it my perception that Apple leverages an overwhelming number of these influencers to massage the narrative in their favor? No. While no influencer’s employment is bound to “journalistic integrity,” it’s unfair to suggest that there aren’t a huge number of creators that put moral honesty above all else. Michael Fisher, Dave2D, and many other creators are famously *not* Apple users and have previously had rather harsh criticism of the brand, and yet, they were both invited in September. Apple has done a better job than probably any other company I can think of at maintaining a healthy balance of traditional domestic media, foreign media, large-and-midsized “creators” as well as smaller and fledgling new-media creators and at no point have I seen unfair criticism of them result in the revocation of access. And I say that as someone who has never been invited. A final note, I have spent a lot of time with traditional journalists and the notion that they are somehow inherently more knowledgeable or trustworthy is laughable. I lost all respect for a highly-regarded automotive journalist who told me in a few words that if “[automaker] was hoping I’d spare some kind words for [unexciting car], putting me in a run-of-the-mill Marriott wasn’t going to do it.” Now if his EIC found out would he face repercussion? Probably. And an influencer that’s self-employed wouldn’t. But generally speaking, I think the onus is on the reader/viewer to determine the credibility and honesty of the journalist/creator, just as it ever was. Other brands have rather explicitly stopped inviting creators (or entire categories) that have shared harsh words about them or their products *ahem* mountain view *ahem* but Apple isn’t one of those brands, lest I can see.

let the fun begin!

It’s unfortunate to see large Saudi brands like this using fake iPhone mockups days after their official debut. It’s lazy, looks like a scam, and outright unprofessional. I expect better.

“Whoops, you’re right, that Chinese ship isn’t transporting material for an Iranian nuclear program! Very observant on your end.”

I’m curious if I’m the only one who does this, but whenever Apple shares these retail launch photos, I always search the images to find someone using an Android 😭 Never found one. I’m sure Apple checks before posting, but I still enjoy looking.